Looking for a knife, under $80

Like the title says. Probably would benefit from a stainless most as I frequently have guests and worry they may ruin something they have no knowledge about. I'd like a Gyuto, 240mm, under $80. I'd be willing to spend a little more to get a beginner set of stones also, if they could be recommended. So, yeah, I'm looking for something good in this price range. Please let me know your thoughts!

The Richmond Artifex AEB-L 240mm gyuto is on close-out for $75. It's a stainless mono steel knife that was made by Lamson & Goodnow as a house brand for CKTG. I have the 210mm version and the paring knife from that product line.

They are a little thick behind the edge but for me that makes it a good beater knife, which sounds like what you are looking for. It's a competent kitchen knife that doesn't take a lot of care.

For an even better deal, they are selling the Richmond Artifex SAB 250mm AEB-L for $55 right now. Pretty much the same knife but with more of a Sabatier profile, so a little higher tip.

If you want to use a water stone, get a decent King combo stone, and pick up a $20 pink stone fixer for stone flattening and you're good to go.

Other options are the venerable Victorinox Fibrox Pro Chef's knife, though those only come in 8" versions, or the Wusthof Pro Chef's knife which comes in 8", 10", and 12" versions. I am not personally familiar with either of those two. Both are about $40. For the softer German steels, I'd personally sharpen on a Norton India IB8 Combo oil stone (about $25) and maybe finish on a hard Arkansas or just strop on leather if you are on a budget.

You can also find a Tojiro DP 240mm for about $65. They are VG-10 stainless steel. I haven't used one but they are frequently recommended.

The Artifex 240mm AEB-L I've seen has a terrible hole in the edge in front of the heel. And is a bit chunky. There might be reasons they are having to closeout this line to get em moved out. And the ones I've seen give me reasons not to recommend them to beginners to better knives (especially if the point is to actually experience a better knife) and especially beginners to sharpening.

You could probably put a 20-25 degrees per side edge on a Tojiro DP to make it beefy and it would still probably cut better than the Artifex.

^^ by the above 'beginners to sharpening' I'm referring to issues that beginning sharpeners won't necessarily know how to solve (reprofiling, thinning, taking down huge shoulders) and also time and energy needed on coarse stones, and refinishing after thinning.

^^ by the above 'beginners to sharpening' I'm referring to issues that beginning sharpeners won't necessarily know how to solve (reprofiling, thinning, taking down huge shoulders) and also time and energy needed on coarse stones, and refinishing after thinning.

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This is certainly a reasonable comment. I consider myself to be an adequate sharpener and I have a fairly broad range of sharpening tools so the Richmond AEB-L blade is not a challenge for me to thin or sharpen. I bought the ones I have because they were affordable, and I wanted something in a simple mono-steel.

I think the Tojiro DP would suit me best. I can have a decent knife to start, then as I become more proficient at sharpening I can use the DP to its fullest potential. Eventually getting into some higher end knives.

Still good info, and been paying it forward as thanks to all the good help from that thread and all that posted.

If it's any help I did hold onto the original DP petty, and FKM 240 gyuto, but have sold off and replaced the santoku. The other DP in various configurations I got later as gifts are still being enjoyed by their owners who were not as strongly bitten the j knife bug and did not add to or change them.